


Silent Heart

by Yuzar



Category: One Piece
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Falling In Love, Love, M/M, Near Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-20
Updated: 2020-11-12
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:20:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 6,049
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26559601
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Yuzar/pseuds/Yuzar
Summary: It was definitely not his day!Being already basically an uncomfortable ex-pawn of the largest Underworld associations and being aware of the uncomfortable secrets of most governmental and non-governmental associations.Let's add to the fact that she is particularly unlucky and therefore being late for the interview that would have saved her from eviction, from being kidnapped by a guy with a spoon on his cheek and throwing up in the damn PINK car of a terribly dangerous guy dressed in PINK it had been a really bad day!It couldn't get any worse than that, right?I apologize for any error but English is not my native language
Relationships: Crocodile/Donquixote Doflamingo, Donquixote "Corazon" Rosinante/Original Character(s), Donquixote Doflamingo/Original Character(s), Franky/Nico Robin, Monkey D. Luffy/Trafalgar D. Water Law
Kudos: 5





	1. Just like a princess

The sound of the alarm abruptly interrupted her sweet and well-deserved rest, abruptly waking her from the world in her dreams, following the rhythm of "I want to change the world".

With only one eye open Helen searched the dark and messy room for the alarm clock, until she found it on the bedside table to her right, under the black shirt.

It was 7:45 am and she had to get up, or at least she should have!  
It should have been because yesterday, just last night, she had argued with her boss about the project to advertise the office created by the director's son who, not having taken it well, had fired her on the spot.

Damn! He needed the money, after all he had to eat somehow, right?

But first of all, he had to be able to get up!

More like a zombie than a human, he slowly got up and sat up in bed with a deep yawn and only then did he finally open both eyes.

It was going to be a long, very long day!

There was a real disaster on the floor, it almost looked like a bomb had exploded in a closet (although in this case it was the closet that exploded)  
The clothes were piled up on piles all over the room, from the chair to the greenish-tiled floor that would have matched perfectly with the blue of the walls if only they weren't covered with various designs.  
Indistinct sketches mixed with urban landscapes and rich in fantastic elements that made it difficult to discern the color of the walls, creating a sort of path invisible to the eyes of someone not attentive but, at the moment, she only wanted one thing: her beloved ginseng in a large cup !

So he grabbed the nearest shirt (the black one that was above the alarm clock) and slipped it over the white undershirt (which was none other than his pajamas) accompanying everything with a deep yawn before heading with a staggering step and still half asleep towards the kitchen trying to dodge the chaos that permeated everything around it.

He went to the metal sink where he took the gray cup and, like every morning, poured a tablespoon of ginseng powder and a teaspoon of sugar into it, then poured the water into it and put the mixture in his beloved crimson red microwave oven.  
'A minute in between and no more, otherwise you will find the language over there'  
After the fourth "Ting" of the microwave, his lifeblood was finally ready!

He opened the door and grabbed the slightly hot cup to place it on the table covered by a purple placemat with hearts and finally sat down!

Just as he was about to savor his little moment of peace (one of the few) his cell phone started ringing

"It's not possible! Not right now!"

With a sigh, he reached out of his chair to grab the cell phone on the counter. She probably never would have done it after drinking coffee but, without it she was still asleep and didn't notice the not-so-smart move as the incredible balance she was provided with helped gravity do its job by making her fall to land just after accepting the call.

"Fall n1 before ginseng: there is!"

She stood up in pain, rubbing her left side as a familiar, worried voice called from the other end of the phone.

-Helen are you okay?-

Trying not to point out too much that she had fallen and had not drunk her coffee (without which she would become easily irritable) she answered the question.

-Good, fine. To what do I owe your call, oh my salvation from starvation? How's your boring office life? -

The male voice chuckled

\- Better than yours, I guess! I bet you just fell! -

Silence

\- And I disturbed you while you were drinking ginseng! -

Helen sighed deeply

\- You got us on all fronts, so make sure your call isn't a waste of time! You have something for me?-

\- I don't know how you do it, but yes! You have an interview at 9:30 at the office Enter Name! Unfortunately I was unable to get you one later ...-

-Insert Name? Okay, maybe it's not the time to ask questions about the name! Where is the headquarters located? -

There was exactly 30 seconds of silence before his response barn.

\- From the top ...-

-Where is it? I have not heard!-

He inhaled and exhaled deeply before saying in a slightly higher voice than before

-On the other side of town ...-

Time seemed to expand for what seemed like hours.  
It was 8:27 !!  
Before Helen could say anything, the call ended

\- I SWEAR THAT IF I CATCH YOU, I WILL KILL YOU !! -

So she ran into the room, grabbing the first pair of pants she came across. He grabbed the bag (the only thing with a semblance of order inside the house) with his right hand and his shoes with his left and rushed out hopping on the tips of his pink socks up the steps of the stairs to the car. There he quickly put on his shoes, untied his hair and started the engine.

It was 8:39

"Being late: there!"

If she had gone at normal speed it would have taken an hour to arrive due to the traffic, but somehow (probably not very legal) she had managed to arrive just in time in front of the office entrance.

Unfortunately, during the journey he had cut the way to a luxurious pitch black foreign car with tinted windows, a real shame!


	2. Maniacs, spoons and crazy laughs

She had arrived on time!  
He didn't know what he had done but he was on time!  
It was 9:27!  
The universe was probably on his side today!

Helen let out in a sigh all the stress that had gripped her stomach during the journey was quickly observed in the mirror, realizing that she was presentable and got out of the car, intending to head towards the gate when someone suddenly placed a hand on her shoulder making her turn around .

In front of him was a man as tall and as wide as a closet, with short black hair and a pair of sunglasses of the same color with a light frame. He wore an elegant suit with a white coat over it. Who the hell was this guy? Why had he stopped her? But above all .... WHY CABBAGE HAD A SPOON ON THE CHEEK !?

Before he could even think of saying anything, the strange man interrupted his train of thought with a simple sentence  
Before he could even think of saying anything, the strange man interrupted his train of thought with a simple sentence.

\- Follow me miss! -

Helen's eyes widened, if possible, even more confused than before. He looked closely at the man to see if he had heard correctly. Then he simply asked the man to repeat himself.

\- You are welcome?-

He just repeated the sentence without changing the tone of his voice in any way

\- I said: Follow me miss! -

Helen let out a deep drowsiness: she said it was going to be quite a long day!

"All we needed was the maniac with the spoon on his cheek!"

\- I'm really sorry but, at the moment I really have to escape! I have an interview, I'm late, haven't had my ginseng, and I just can't sit and listen to potential abusers! Have a nice day and never see us again! -

That said, she turned around intending to get as far away as possible from that strange type (potential maniac) while, behind her, a laugh could be heard coming from a luxurious black car with darkened windows parked right behind the strange man. But, honestly, Helen didn't care! He had to do this interview and he would!

She made it to the door handle when the strange guy with the spoon on his cheek warned her

\- Follow me or I'll have to take action! -

If it had happened at any other day or moment he would have let it go or even would have followed him to understand what the hell he wanted and, if he had been a maniac, he could have easily defended himself: not for nothing did he turn with a pocket knife which was also quite skilled at use! But today he was really in a bad mood, as well as late, so he wasn't really in the mood for jokes!

\- Do you know where you could put your provisions? Maybe he could stick them in his face so as not to leave that poor spoon alone !! -

And so she turned back to the door more than willing to go in and have this damned interview. Meanwhile the giggle had started again, slightly louder than before or maybe just because the rear window had been lowered slightly. But sadly, the molester's nightmare wasn't over yet ...

\- Follow me, this is the last warning-

This was the straw that broke the camel's back! He wasn't a vulgar person but, when it's too much, it's too much!

\- If you really have to go somewhere go fuck yourself, or maybe in the alley on the right! I saw a beautiful girl who I bet would definitely be more willing to listen to your requests in exchange for some money! So, at least, he would leave me alone! -

She would have turned and walked in through that damned door if only the maniac hadn't lifted her like a sack of potatoes and tossed her with little grace into the luxurious black car and then locked the door and started the car.

\- THIS IS KIDNAPPING !! LET ME GO NOW! -

The usual laugh, coming from who knows which corner of the car silenced her, forcing her to try to identify the source of the sound. He was in a spacious car, very spacious and with seats colored in one of the colors with which he had a more complicated relationship of all, (not to say very bad) that is pink plus all its various shades! And it was all pink in there! There was pink everywhere, even the ceiling was pink!

She suddenly had a fit of nausea and was genuinely tempted to throw up on the seats of such abominable color when something even worse entered her field of vision.  
Not only was it pink but it was actually in bad taste!

He was a very tall, short-haired blond man who wore a coat over his shoulders.   
A horrible coat of pink feathers.  
A fucking feather coat ... PINK  
As if that weren't enough to make any person commit suicide with a minimum of good taste, that shame was over a STRAWBERRY shirt left completely open and a pair of PINK and FUCSIA pants. On his feet he wore a pair of BORDEAUX moccasins and they were the ones to give the coup de grace!  
Those damn glasses with PURPLE lenses! On his feet he wore a pair of RED moccasins and they were the ones who gave the coup de grace: those damned glasses with PURPLE lenses!

He was about to take the lighter to set himself on fire (and possibly set the car on fire as well) when the car turned quickly to the right. 

And that was where he really threw up.


	3. Snot and Dodo

He started throwing up and the car stopped. Someone had opened the door and carried her out, even offering her a bag in which to finish emptying her stomach while a man with a tremendously annoying voice was moaning loudly in the background. When she finally finished, the figure, who she understood to be a woman, sat her down with her back against the door and handed her a packet of crackers.

When the carbohydrate-rich piece of pasta entered her stomach, she immediately felt better. She tried to thank the girl who had helped her but, before she could even open her mouth, a second horrible figure without any good taste entered her field of vision.

He was a thin, sickly man who was hiding under a huge blue coat decorated with several concentric circles. The outside of the coat was white, dirty-looking, and everything in his figure made one think of something as slimy and disgusting as snot. His black, greasy-looking hair mingled with an untidy, unkempt beard, while a pair of sunglasses covered his face. A stabbing scar could be seen above his right eyebrow, and snot seemed to be dripping continuously from his nostrils.

"If you exist, make this a fucking dream! If it isn't, please send a bolt of lightning at me to end this torment as quickly as possible"  
"If you exist, make this a fucking dream! If it isn't, please send a lightning bolt on me to end this torment as quickly as possible"

Unfortunately it was not a dream at all and that man approached her with a menacing air pointing at him a sort of scepter / stick with the symbol of the clubs of the playing cards on top. With his slimy, annoying voice he started moaning (screaming, of course), causing a quick return of headache and nausea.

-HOW DO YOU ALLOW YOURSELF TO DO SOME THING AND TO VOMIT IN THE WONDERFUL SIGNORINO'S CAR! I SHOULD KILL YOURSELF FOR SOMETHING! -

"Are we kidding? Where the hell did I go, to a hangout for the mentally ill?"

Before she could actually show her disappointment (as well as confusion) about her murder the girl who had helped her spoke in her defense, or so it seemed to her.

\- It was probably bad! Could it pay back the cleaning costs of the car, if we killed it it would remain dirty, wouldn't it be wasteful, Trebol? -

If, until now, I had seen nothing but horrible things, that girl was a breath of color and hope in the good taste of mankind.

"Finally someone who has the slightest sense of taste (or maybe, simply, is not color blind, since she is a woman ...)"

Her pretty greenish hair was held loose and reached down the middle of her back. She wore a simple white tank top with horizontal blue stripes and a pair of denim shorts. His eyes were very peculiar: of a brown so light they were almost yellowish.

The strange brat guy seemed to think about it for a second before nodding and resuming hammering my head with his annoying and irritating voice like things in the world, addressing someone out of my sight.

-DOFFY! HOW SHOULD YOU PAY FOR THE CAR!? -

A slight chuckle (obviously annoying, albeit not as annoying as Snot's) to his right preceded the arrival of its owner in my field of vision. Everything could be expected, except that it was that PINK guy who, moreover, wore sunglasses on cloudy autumn days! It was definitely taller than he expected: at least two meters, if not more! Now that she saw it better, she could see some small details that had escaped her before (and which she would have gladly done without), such as the ORANGE belt and the BLUE ribbons.

Now that she thought about it, that figure was familiar ... Maybe she had seen it on TV? No, she can't afford to pay for television, so she only has a computer! He must have read it in a newspaper ... Maybe he's someone famous?

Trying to remember where the hell she'd already seen a person wearing a horrible pink puffer jacket, his mind automatically searched his memory archive for the name "Doffy".

Doffy ... Dofl ... DOFLAMINGO! DONQUIXOTE DOFLAMINDO THE MAFIOSO!

She was definitely up to his neck in shit, if not directly ten feet underground!


	4. The show had begun!

She was definitely dead! He just hoped it would end quickly and painlessly.

What she could now call her future killer was in front of her and looming over her. He let out a deep sigh, mentally going over the whole list of saints and deities of all known religions (and even the unknown ones) trying to keep calm: they said he had to pay them back and he would! She probably would never get rid of them, but she would stay alive, right?  
The important thing is to survive! She had worked for a long time and renounced many things to get a normal life and had no intention of ruining her so much treacherous simple life, boring and normal like many!

The smile of his tormentor was still on his face, as if fixed with the bostick. He couldn't see his expression through his dubious opaque glasses, except for a thin vein pulsing on his forehead.

Helen took a deep breath: either it goes or breaks it!

-I am willing to repair the damage I have done! How much would the figure be? -

The smile on the flamingo's face widened slightly: it seemed as if he was about to burst out laughing at any moment and he glanced at his subordinates to silence them, before calling one by name.

\- Vergo! This young lady asked for the cost of the damages! -

"What's the point of this? Is he crazy? Almost certainly! Why do I ask myself these questions?"

The guy with the sunglasses and the spoon on his cheek that I had mistakenly mistaken for a maniac ("but why the hell did he kidnap her, anyway?") Walked over ready to read something from his cell phone with a serious and professional air.

-The total figure amounts precisely to 1.20 million euros-

He could have said a lot of clever things at the time, like, "Why so much?", Or maybe "Who the fuck drives a car so expensive it has such a high damage repair cost?", But at that moment there 'only thing he said was:

\- Saint Giuseppina Filomena! * -

And so there was a general laugh led by one of the biggest mobsters with the support of the government: Donquixotte Doflamingo, aka the Joker.

All this while poor Helen was still utterly distraught: in a single day she had been kidnapped, she had thrown up in the car of a dangerous man to say the least and had taken on a debt so big that she built a house. Today was definitely not his lucky day! Maybe he should have read the horoscope before even thinking about putting his nose outside the house!

The laughter continued for a good five minutes, after which those present had continued to giggle under their breath, holding their bellies and wiping their hands caused by too much laughter, until the head signaled to stop. Without changing his expression from the initial smile, he asked a simple, small, terrible question.

\- So .. How are you going to pay? -

Helen's mouth closed and opened several times, not too unlike a fish. All this while the index finger of his left hand was slowly raised, as if to reply, but without being able to voice his thoughts. The man in front of her chuckles slightly before making a proposal (I guess, given the story, you already guessed what kind, but I put it just for sport anyway)

\- You don't look like you have this small sum in your wallet, so how do we put it? You said you would pay for the damage, right? At this point you could always pay back in kind, right? -

The atmosphere changed radically, while the flamingo started laughing again, the expression on the girl's face had changed dramatically. She was serious, almost cold, it was as if she had become another person at any moment! He brought his left hand to his chin with a large movement of his arm, as if to evaluate the proposal, distracting those present, while his right hand was in a completely different place: in the innermost pocket of the bag, to tightly grip the handle of the Swiss army knife he always carried with him.

"I understand survival, but I'm dead here anyway! This guy is totally out of melon and even if I did as he says, who would give me the guarantee that he wouldn't kill me right away? Besides, not to demean me but, a fuck it's not worth millions! If I really have to die, I might as well not go alone, don't you think? "

She only had one chance: if she failed she would risk survival and, rather than end up in the hands of someone like that, she would have gladly preferred to be dead!

He quickly assessed the height of his lens: he didn't have much choice! He could have slit his throat or at least put a knife in his armpit in search of the artery, if only he hadn't been a giant cabbage at least 2 meters and 10! The only choice left was to open his stomach and hope he bleed to death, hoping that his underlings are too distracted by their boss to care if she would disappear into chaos.  
She had no idea where she was exactly but, they hadn't strayed far from the offices she was headed to and she would have only had to get noticed by a passing car and be taken to the police. He couldn't afford even a second of hesitation and, despite having a possible plan B, it was much more risky and dangerous!

She took a deep breath and stood up without much haste as if she moved in a strange way they would immediately realize that something was wrong and, of all of them, what worried her most was the guy named Vergo. He had been silent all the time except when he described the price of the damage to the car and from the outside he looked like someone strong. He slowly approached the man with the pink puff over his shoulders, observing him, as if to evaluate him, while his right hand gripped the knife harder and harder. He also had another weapon, anything can be a weapon, from a pen to ... a hair wand? What the hell was a hair wand doing in her bag? This was not the time to think about such details! (He had picked it up from the floor the night before and put it in his bag totally at random) The flamingo seemed to get tired of waiting.

-Have you decided what to do?-

Helen nodded, motioning the man to put his ear slightly closer, as if to whisper something

\- fuck you! -

The giant drew back quickly, inserting a finger into his left ear and then shaking it slightly, while a thin vein swelled up his forehead: he was pissed! His voice changed rapidly, becoming menacing.

-Sorry? I'm afraid I haven't heard right ..-

A fake smile was painted on Helen's face: the show had begun!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * thank my cousin for allowing me this quote


	5. Stop and fuck

Helen approached slowly, every single step was measured to the millimeter: every single movement from that precise moment could have cost her her life! A dark shadow passed over his eyes as he kept repeating in his mind what he should have done as an endless mantra, every single movement of every single muscle. Her shoulders tensed slightly, ready to shoot at any moment and a mocking smile painted her face ..

////////////////////////////////////////////////// ////////////////////////////////////////////////// /////////////

Doflamingo's eyes widened slightly from under the tinted lenses and his brows tipped slightly.

"Those movements .. that look .. it was not possible right? He had heard that anyone who ever tried to leave the corporation had failed in his intent for obvious reasons .. Anyone who was part of it often had strong contacts with the underworld and World Nobles and a leak of secret information could cause a collapse of the entire system and world equilibrium! Yet that murderous air .. There is no other explanation! It had to be so! "

An adrenaline rush went through him that only widened his smile even more. He licked his lips, moistening them slightly with impatience as a cold shiver ran down his back starting from his neck.

Was it fear? Was it excitement? He didn't even know it but he was definitely sure of one thing: things were taking a very interesting turn!

////////////////////////////////////////////////// ////////////////////////////////////////////////// ///////////////

He moved swiftly, in a single fluid motion he had repeated over and over many years ago. The blade slid quickly out of the pocket of the purse, glinting in the sunlight, as if to greet him before carrying a life into the shadows.

But the blow never reached its target

Helen's eyes widened slightly at her right wrist trapped in the giant hand of her lens. At the same time the click of the gun safety filled the air around her.

It was over .. but not for her!

The knife leapt from the girl's right to left hand, guided by a precise movement of her hands as her body automatically acted to attempt a second thrust into the bare abdomen of that pink abomination. The blow was stopped again but, this time, he had managed to wound him, albeit superficially. The wound was superficial and hadn't reached any of his internal organs but at this point he had both hands trapped!

He looked up to observe the man's expression and blanched when he noticed that he was still smiling, indeed his smile had widened even more! This man was totally crazy!

-All you know how to treasure? -

At that point he acted on instinct: he used his opponent's grip to keep his balance and lifted his leg hitting him precisely on the genitals.

One of the man's underlings screamed as his boss just let out a loud groan, let go of his hands, and leaned over in pain. Taking advantage of momentary freedom Helen jumped back, ready to spring and run away at any moment. Why didn't he do it right away? Maybe because he had three guns pointed at?

The slimy and greasy man quickly approached the flamingo babbling something about the precious balls of his precious master and how all this had shattered his ambitions (and not only those)

\- HOW DID YOU DARE TO HIT SMILE IN THIS WAY!?!?!?!? YOU DESERVE DEATH FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE! MONET, VERGO! -

As soon as their names were spoken the two lined up their guns at the woman, ready to fire at the man's next word. Helen squeezed the knife tightly: things weren't going exactly as she had planned! He still had a card to play but he would have preferred to avoid .. It was too risky to do such a thing with all those guns pointed at him, especially since that old Snot was stuck to his trump card!

The old man's lips parted slightly as Helen prepared to spring forward.

One two..

\- STOP! -

His subordinates lowered their guns slightly, and time began to flow normally again .. Only in that instant did Helen realize that she had even stopped breathing: that man really had a terrifying aura! She was sure that a normal person would never resist such a strong influence! The tone of voice had been firm and harsh, unexpectedly powerful and severe, compared to that seen so far.

\- Lower the guns -

-But Doff ..-

-I SAID: LOWER THE GUNS! -

Leaning on the man next to him Donquixotte Doflamingo straightened up still in pain from the previous blow. His face had become serious, too serious, and a vein throbbed dangerously on his forehead. His gaze swept over everyone present, scrutinizing them carefully, with a particular focus on Helen. The silence seemed to last for hours but at the end the man spoke pointing to the woman in front of him.

-She comes with us.-

The reactions of each of those present were different:

Trebol turned red with anger and started mumbling about drowning people with a concrete block at their feet.

Monet began to look first at his young gentleman and then at the woman, then at the young gentleman ..

Vergo merely raised an eyebrow

Helen turned white

"Fuck!"


	6. very uncommon ways to get to know someone

The sound of the cell phone alarm woke her up like every day, blasting the first theme song of the Inuyasha anime and forcibly tearing her from her dreams. Basically she hoped it had all been a dream (at times a real nightmare) but the white ceiling above her head and the soft blanket told her otherwise: it had really happened!

She turned over a couple of times in the blankets before pulling herself up with a disconsolate sigh: a long, very long day was waiting for her!

He let out a long, deep, loud yawn before studying more carefully the room he had only lasted the night before after what had been one of the best (or worst, depending on your point of view) affairs of her life. Unexpectedly, the room was decent, fairly plain with the walls and furniture a slight blue tint. Beside the bed was the bedside table on which he had badly abandoned his cell phone the night before due to fatigue caused by the tension accumulated during the day. Just in front of the closet there was the shirt of the day before abandoned on the floor and, not far away, you could see a mismatched sock, while the other had mysteriously disappeared. Helen could more or less remember throwing her pants somewhere in the bathroom but she wasn't very sure.

She stretched for a second before standing up (supported solely by the desire for a good ginseng in a large cup) She walked staggering still drowsy from sleep, towards the closet, kicking the shirt to move it from in the middle of the passage. With a yawn he opened the wardrobe door, more and more amazed at the sobriety that permeated that room. There weren't many dresses inside the wardrobe but they were all quite nice and elegant. She then opted to wear the simple black high-necked dress that had caught her attention since the night before when she had to change into pajamas for the night.

After a shower in record time, she changed and left the room assigned to her to go to the kitchen or, alternatively, to a dining room. Following the corridor painted a dark blue he found herself in front of the stairs to the ground floor which began to descend.

Probably none of this would have ever happened if Helen had drank her ginseng since she woke up but, as you know, she didn't, so, right in the middle of the staircase, Helen lost her balance, or rather tripped over a banana peel, thus falling like a sack of potatoes down the stairs, or so it would have been, had it not been for something to cushion the blow and stop the fall between her and the steps.

With her eyes still closed in surprise at finding a banana cabbage in the middle of the stairs, Helen tried to figure out what she had landed on. That something was certainly big and yet soft as a feather pillow. Squinting Helen was able to confirm that there were actual feathers underneath her ... Indeed, a whole coat of black feathers. Nothing too strange if there hadn't been someone in that coat too!


	7. from one they become two

They were multiplying!

THEY WENT OUT OF THE FUCKING WALLS!

She was 99.9999999999999998% certain that this wasn't Doflamingo so who the fuck was that?  
A clone?  
Did he want to create an army of people with colored puffers on their backs so that he could attack the fashion houses and make everyone's eyes go out because of his horrible taste?  
Was he trying to hybridize the Golden Chocobo so he could walk on water and become the next Jesus-style prophet?  
Did he want to carry out Order No. 66 by unleashing the Rainbow Clone War and the LGBT flamingo attack?

A slight jolt beneath her quickly brought her back to reality, putting an end to her ruminations about world conquests by a flock of otherwise straight flamingos. Then she stood up trying not to weigh too much on the person who, in some way not very clear, had ended up under her, who immediately got up by putting strength on her arms.

Now that she could see it better she was 99.9999999999999999% sure they were at least related, and not just because of the coat which, for some reason (perhaps the decidedly more sober color), didn't bother her too much. From facial features to build to hair color, they were all too similar. The only difference was that this person's face was not covered by a pair of glasses of really dubious taste but by some makeup that made him look very like a clown, with a red smile drawn up to the cheekbones and the design of a tear. green under the left eye.

He looked shocked and very, very confused. His eyes were completely wide open and his gaze kept scrolling up and down completely lost.

"I'd like to see you if someone falls on your back at half past five in the morning ... If I catch whoever left that skin, I'll do it in stew with boiled rice!"

\- I'm sorry, I slipped on the stairs! I hope I didn't hurt you! -

Having said this Helen reached out her right hand towards the man, looking at him carefully to try to understand if he had done any permanent damage.

If possible, the person in front of her seemed even more lost and confused than before. He grabbed the hand that was offered to him with slight hesitation and, after giving it a light and quick squeeze, put his hands back into the pockets of his pale jeans. To interrupt that moment, already rather embarrassing itself, Helen's stomach thought about it and she decided she wanted to be filled right at that precise moment. The sound boomed in the large room they were in, raising an unknown eyebrow.

-I'm sorry ... Do you happen to know where the kitchen is? -

Without commenting on the sounds emitted by her digestive system, the funny and soft man motioned her to follow him, guiding her in what was in effect, a veritable labyrinth of apparently endless rooms and corridors. The walls always of the same color as the doors certainly did not help to orient oneself and, from a certain point of view, to have come across (or rather collided) with that man who was decidedly more able or used to juggling in that house still completely unknown to her. They kept walking until they reached a door that seemed to be the same as all the others. At that point, his mysterious and silent companion reached out and turned the silver handle which unscrewed from the door and remained in his hand with a "pop".

-Is it normal to do this? -

The man shook his head in confusion. It was evident that he had not done it on purpose, yet the whole situation had something really absurd about it. He tried a couple of times to put the handle back in place but to no avail. Things only got worse when the two-meter-tall young black flamingo bent down to take a closer look at the hole left by the handle in a likely attempt to tuck it inside. It was a truly absurd sight! She tried hard not to laugh seeing that man so tall and awkward in such an absurd position and, before he started laughing, he decided to take matters into his own hands.

\- I can try?-

He nodded, straightening up and handing her the handle. So it took less than a second, she just had to insert the handle and turn it for it to return to its place. A satisfied smile lit up her face: finally something good that day! Now that she was living next to that guy she would have to keep those moments tight to avoid burning his entire wardrobe. Just the thought of setting fire to those objects of the devil immediately relieved her of everything that had happened before (not to mention the proximity of the moment when she would drink ginseng!)

-Done! Now we can go for breakfast! -

With a smile on her face Helen opened the door. She didn't know, however, that her smile would soon fade due to an annoyingly colorful presence and chaos inside the room. Yes, it was going to be a very long day!


End file.
